


So you're thinking of defying the government

by defcontwo, Dorasolo



Category: Ant-Man (Movies), Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Canon Divergence - Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Gen, POV Alternating
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-15
Updated: 2019-05-15
Packaged: 2020-03-05 16:04:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18832000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/defcontwo/pseuds/defcontwo, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dorasolo/pseuds/Dorasolo
Summary: “Are you here because I sexually harassed you in 2012?" Cassie is friends with Captain America, Hope can do literally anything except cook, and Scott just wants to make sure everyone has enough enchiladas to eat.Or: the one where Steve visits Cassie in San Francisco & shenanigans ensue.





	So you're thinking of defying the government

**Author's Note:**

> it has been like a full on decade since the two of us last wrote together & this was fun as hell -- we hope you enjoy reading it as much we enjoyed writing it!

The past five years have been a long, strange time for Cassie Lang. One day she was eating breakfast with her stepdad Jim Paxton in the kitchen and then suddenly, Paxton turned into dust before her very eyes. Her mom had come home from work pretty much right after Paxton had turned into dust. That had been a good thing because Cassie had screamed so loud and for so long that she couldn’t possibly scream anymore. 

Her mom screamed too, though, and as a kid, that had been terrifying and eye-opening but later, she would come to appreciate it. At least they’d had each other. Not every kid in her class was that lucky. 

Her dad never came home so she figured he was dust too - and so was his partner Hope - and also Hope’s weird science parents, because Mom had grabbed Cassie and taken off in her Volvo to see if there was anyone left alive in the Pyms’ house by the beach. There wasn’t anybody there, either. 

So the last five years have been just Cassie and Mom, and sometimes a night or two at Dad’s house with Uncle Luis, who lived there by himself after the disappearances.

Sometimes, though, Captain America called on video chat to check in on her and she knows that nobody else at school has Steve Rogers calling to talk, so that’s pretty cool. Steve had told her that because Dad helped him in Germany, he wanted to help look after Cassie while Dad was away. Even though she was only ten, Cassie knew Dad was probably dead, but Steve made her feel better about all of it.

Except as it turns out, Dad wasn’t dusted, he was stuck in the Quantum Realm. Cassie isn’t even mad that his life came down to a rat stepping on a circuit board. Steve once told her that being a superhero meant accepting the weird stuff as fact, and Cassie figures she’d make a great hero at this point for all the weird stuff in her life. 

After the big battle in New York, and Dad and Hope and Paxton are back, life settles a little. It’s mostly pretty cool getting to know everybody all over again, but it’s also pretty weird because she’s not the same, but they are. Mom and Paxton have their own issues to work out because Paxton was gone for so long. Dad and Hope are more of a united front because for them, they lost five years, but neither of them lived through it. So it’s easier for them, they don’t have to re-learn each other on top of getting to know this new, older Cassie. Dad and Hope are suddenly super crazy serious about being together in a way that Cassie doesn’t remember from before, but it’s super cute. It’s been an adjustment for her, to say the least, but not all bad. 

Okay, so maybe catching Dad and Hope making out in the laundry room when all she wanted was to get her soccer jersey for practice was definitely bad.

But lately, she's been worried because she hasn’t heard from Steve in like, forever, so she calls him to see how he’s doing. He picks up right away, like he usually does, coming into focus slowly, like he’s somewhere with bad service. “Cassie, everything ok?” 

Cassie takes a second to really look at Steve and now, after everything, it’s easier to see what was there all along: he’s tired. Exhausted, in a way that everyone is these days, only with him, it looks a little worse. 

It also looks like he’s video chatting her from a diner which, okay, that’s a little unexpected. She was kinda hoping for a sneak peek of Wakanda.

Cassie shakes her head. “Everything is fine! Shit, sorry, I didn't mean to worry you. Just wanted to see how you’re doing.” 

“Language,” Steve says, absently, like he’s only remembering to make the joke out of habit. It had been hilarious, the first time he’d ever done it, because it was the week after she accidentally heard him swearing up a storm at the Black Widow through the phone. She learned a lot of new words that day that she’s definitely never going to tell Paxton about. 

So, Steve’s not good with kids. He’s….gotten better. Kind of. And anyways, Cassie’s not a kid. She’s basically fully grown, these days. 

“Where are you?” Cassie asks. 

Steve looks around him, and gives a small shrug. “Somewhere halfway between Wichita and Denver, I think. I’m on a road trip, kind of. I took one the last time….the last time I felt like I didn't really know what I was doing, so. If it ain’t broke, you know?” 

That’s the other thing she likes about Steve. He never lies to her. Not even the little lies that grown ups always like to throw out, like they think she can’t tell that things aren’t as okay as they’re pretending they are. He never lied to make her feel better and that’s what really helped, in the end. 

“So you’re coming out west? That’s what I’m hearing you say. You know what’s out west, Steve?” Cassie says, all but bouncing in her seat. 

“Yeah, the de Young,” Steve says, voice dry, like he thinks he’s funny. 

Cassie gratuitously rolls her eyes. Grownups, honestly. “Also, me. And my dad and Hope….and my mom and Paxton too. Have you met Hope? Hope is awesome.” 

“You know, there was so much going on that I didn’t really get the chance,” Steve says. “Alright, I can swing by. I could probably make it there by…..Saturday, that okay?” 

Cassie grins. “Saturday would be _awesome_.” 

“Just, uh….maybe don’t invite your Uncle Luis?” Steve asks, grimacing. 

Which, okay. Uncle Luis did totally wig out that one time he got to meet Steve and the whole thing was like…..hilarious but Steve didn’t seem too happy about it, so yeah, okay. Just this once. Luis is making himself pretty scarce at the house now that Scott and Hope are back, anyway. Something gross about wanting to give them privacy. 

Cassie throws him a thumbs up. “You got yourself a deal.”

**

It helps, being on the road. Steve’s never been any good at doing nothing but right this second, there’s not a whole lot to do and Steve…..Steve feels more lost than ever, these days. 

Five years. Five years filled with a yawning, aching loneliness, and at the end of it, they win, but they still lose so fucking much. 

It’s different for Bucky and Sam. Five years for him was the blink of an eye for them, and right now, Steve needs to figure out how to breathe without feeling like he’s gonna pass out every time he looks at them. 

Natasha gets it. It’s why he asked if she wanted to come along for the ride but she has her own path to follow, her own head to get on straight after grieving and dying and then finding herself back to life, again. 

And Steve needs time. Time to grieve, for himself, for every person who lived every second of those five years. 

He never really let himself grieve, before. Not in all the ways that counted. 

It’ll do him good, probably, to see Cassie. Because at the end of the day, she’s who they did this all for…..she’s the kid who gets to grow up with her family all around her; no missing pieces and a whole bright life ahead of her. 

And she’s a good kid, for all that Steve always thinks he’s saying the wrong thing, doing the wrong thing, when he talks to her. Bucky was always the one who was good with kids, back in Brooklyn. Steve…..Steve was always too sick for anyone to let him near their children. 

Sam’s probably good with kids too, come to think of it. He seems like he would be although, it didn’t exactly come up in between fighting Nazis and becoming international fugitives.  
Christ. They all need a vacation. 

Maybe Steve’ll bring them both along, the next time he goes to visit Cassie. 

These touchstones are good for him, these reminders that he fought for this world for a reason. 

There was a moment, right after he saved Natasha, when he thought about going all the way back, to the past, to be with Peggy. A moment when he thought that that would make his life easier, for once, but the thing about the past is, it’s never as easy as you want to remember it being. 

And he’s lived in this brave new world for too long, now. Breathed in it, bled in it, and loved in it. 

So yeah, he’ll go see Cassie and he’ll finally get to meet Scott’s partner, Hope, and he’ll make plans, for the future. 

The rest will follow, eventually. 

**

“Cass, why are you staring out the window like that?” Hope has finished her workout in the basement to find Cassie peering out of the bay windows in the living room, practically vibrating off the walls with excitement.

Cassie has been staying with them at Scott’s house fairly often to get to know them again, so it’s not farfetched to assume that maybe she invited a friend over for the afternoon. After all, it’s her house too. Cassie looks pretty amped, which isn’t all that rare for her. After all, she’s a witty extrovert, and just a bit dramatic, like her father. 

“It’s okay, Cass, you can have a friend over,” Hope reassures her, trying to sound parental but mostly failing. Still, Cassie’s excitement seems like it must be for more than for the kids Cassie calls jokers in her study group at school.

Hope is still in her workout clothes, sweaty and a bit troubled. Scott and Luis are out shopping for a new van to replace the one destroyed by Thanos, so of course this is when something weird would happen. 

“Is it a boy you like? Or, uh, a girl? Either is fine! I’m home so it’s fine to invite somebody over, I mean, telling your dad you like somebody might not be fine with him, but it’s fine with me,” Hope says, gamefully ignoring how her voice gets higher towards the end. 

Hope has no idea why she thought fifteen was going to be easier than ten, mentally calculating how many times she’s said the word “fine” in the past minute. Maybe she should start cutting Hank some slack about her childhood, but on the other hand, maybe she shouldn’t. 

Cassie looks at her like she sprouted fairy wings. “Gross, Hope, it’s not a _boy_ ,” Cassie says, and then she pauses. “I mean, okay, it is a boy, but it’s really not like that…...I mean, well, I guess you’ll see for yourself because he’s here!” She flings the door open, and rushes out onto the porch. “Steve!”

Captain America is riding up the block on his Harley, and he stops in the driveway, parking politely to one side. 

Hope is incredulous, because this is truly weirder than anything she imagined involving a teenage girl, and it shows. “Captain America?” 

“Not anymore,” Captain America says, glibly, before bounding up the porch steps and wrapping Cassie up in a tight hug. “Hey, Cass, how’re you holding up?” 

Cass takes a step back from _Captain America_ , because that’s who it is, that’s Steven Grant Rogers, born 1918 in Brooklyn, New York, and yeah, okay, so maybe there wasn’t a single class in school where Hope wasn’t a relentless overachiever. 

It’s a shock to see Cassie bounce back on her heels and punch the man lightly on the arm like they’re friends. To say that this visit is unexpected is the biggest understatement, but Hope is not Scott and she can handle this kind of thing like an adult, so she stops gawking and gets down to business. 

Hope clears her throat. “What do you mean, not anymore?” 

Captain Not-America shrugs, and smiles that small, self-deprecating grin from the newsreels that Hope was always pretty convinced was just an act. Maybe not, though. “Let’s just say that I need a break. And I know a retired pararescue that would look pretty good in the red, white, and blue.” 

“Sam Wilson?” Hope asks, risking sounding like a teacher’s pet, because she made a point to read all of their files after Germany, so she’d be prepared for the next time. She didn’t get a chance to talk to Wilson much after everything was done and dusted (ha, literally) but she still has his file mostly memorized. Okay, totally memorized. The bright side of being Hank Pym’s daughter is that she has his photographic memory. 

“The very same,” Captain Retired-America says, and then holds out a hand for her to shake. “Steve Rogers. We never actually got the chance to actually meet, huh? But, uh, you’ve got a hell of a right hook.” 

“You have to know how to throw a punch.” Hope smiles and takes his hand, giving him her firmest business handshake, “Hope Van Dyne. And thank you, it was an honor to work with you on the ah, Thanos situation. I have to admit I didn’t know you were coming to San Francisco, otherwise I’d have,” she drops off and looks around, blankly, fumbling for something to say, “I don’t know. At least worn shoes.” 

“Sorry Hope, I should have told you,” Cass says, sounding sheepish, suddenly looking really young. “You can put your shoes on if it would make you feel better, though.”

Hope side-eyes Cassie, but gestures for them both to come inside. “Please come in, have a seat. The least I can do is offer you something to drink,” she says, glancing around the living room to see if it’s too messy for guests. It isn’t at all messy; Scott is generally pretty organized, even if the furniture Luis has been using needs to be burned. 

She hurries to the kitchen, calling out over her shoulder, “Be right back!”

“She can do almost anything,” Cassie whispers, still loudly enough that Hope can hear, “like, she was doing mixed martial arts in the basement for two hours as a _light_ workout. And she’s so freaking smart. But she can’t cook for shit. It’s a good thing my Dad can cook because he got really into it while on house arrest.”

Hope shakes her head, as she goes digging through the pantry for anything that’s not tap water. It’s adorable, how Cassie thinks she’s being quiet, when Hope can hear everything they’re saying in the other room.

But also, it’s interesting. She’s curious to see what they say next. She tells herself it’s definitely not eavesdropping if she doesn’t have to work to hear them.

“Trust me, I know, he cooked the first real food that me and Nat had had in years, at the Compound. He made us all tacos. Back in my day, we used to boil everything. I am….not a good cook,” Steve says, in that deep voice of his. 

Hope hears Cassie scoff, loudly, just as she unearths a case of Coca-Cola from underneath an old earthquake kit. She checks the expiration date and is relieved that it says 2025.

“Did you seriously just use the words ‘back in my day’? Dude. I know you’re like, ancient, but still, my dad is technically older than you,” Cassie’s voice rings loud and clear in her apparent teenaged disdain. 

“If I’m ancient and your dad is older than me, what does that make him?” Steve asks, as Hope re-enters the living room, leaning against the door jamb to take in the sight before her. 

Steve has taken a seat in the worn, overstuffed easy chair in the living room. It’s a comical mustard yellow monstrosity that Luis got off the street and it creaks ominously under Steve’s weight.

He looks seriously, hilariously out of place, and Hope finds herself wishing she had her camera. 

“Dad?” Cassie says, flopping down into the equally worn flamingo pink lawn chair that was once Luis’s _abuelita’s_ to Steve’s left. “He’s already the world’s greatest grandma.” 

Steve opens his mouth, like he wants to ask a question, and snaps it shut just as fast. 

Hope ducks her head, hiding the grin that’s stealing its way across her face. This is as good a time as any to remind them that she’s still here. 

”Hey guys,” Hope says, holding up the cans of Coke, “are these okay?” 

Steve waves a hand. “Yeah, of course, thank you,” he says, as takes the can she offers and then pops it open but doesn’t take a sip, letting a small amount of warm carbonated soda bubble up and over onto his hand. “Seriously, you don’t have to go to any trouble. I’m not planning on staying that long.” 

Hope shrugs. “It’s no trouble getting you a soda. What brings you out our way? And what should I call you, if you’re not Cap anymore?”

What Hope actually wants to know is how this situation in the living room is happening in the first place, so she sits down on a possibly stolen barstool and drinks her soda. 

“Uh, just Steve is fine,” Steve says, “or, you know, Sam likes to call me old man a lot, so I guess I answer to that too.” He sets the can of Coke aside, on the coffee table, and leans forward, balancing both elbows on his knees. “I used to call Cassie, every once in a while, just to check in on her. Since I was headed out west anyways, figured I’d drop in, say hi.” 

And that’s certainly something to chew on, the fact that Captain America spent the past five years checking up on Cassie when Scott couldn’t, and Hope already knows how this will make Scott feel, equal parts thrilled and unbearably sad, because it will remind him of all the years with his daughter that he missed. She mentally prepares herself to help Scott handle this, if necessary. It’ll be a doozy. 

Still, it was nice of Steve to do. Her mom’s friend Peggy used to do the same for Hope, back when she was in school, and she has to wonder if that’s where he got the idea from. 

Or more likely, it’s just the sort of thing that a guy like Steve Rogers does. 

Well. With any luck, Scott will get back soon, hopefully with something to eat, because a can of room temperature soda doesn’t exactly feel like the best thank you, and she won’t risk burning down the house trying to make them lunch.

Until then, Hope will just have to hold down the fort. 

**

“Cass? Hope? Who’s bike is that in the driveway? Do we even know anybody who rides a bike? It’s a really nice bike!” 

Scott walks in, holding a large foil wrapped dish, still calling out to whoever is in earshot, loudly, “I dropped Luis off at his cousin Ernesto’s house and Ernesto’s wife sent me home with what feels like three pounds of enchiladas again. I’ve got red sauce and green sauce. I think they’re another gift for saving the world? Anyway, I have…” 

His voice trails off as he spots Cassie and Hope with Steve sitting in his living room, on the heroically rescued from the trash mustard chair. His jaw slackens and his eyes widen. “Uh... Cap?” 

Cassie jumps out of her chair to rescue the enchiladas, which, really, thank god. Hope loves those enchiladas. 

Hope groans. “Scott, this is why you really need to check your texts.” 

Steve stands up, which Hope is pretty sure makes the whole thing worse, since he takes up half the living room. She has a sudden, vivid mental image of Steve trying to sit in the pink lawn chair and has to swallow a laugh. 

Steve clears his throat. “Hey, Scott, sorry for the….” He slants a sideways look at Cassie and makes a small face. “I guess it was a surprise drop-in. How’s everything going?” 

Scott puts one hand on his hip and appears to really be thinking about a response. “Great, just great, Cap! I’m getting back into the security business, and business is really good...” 

He grimaces and then seems to deflate. “Are you here because I sexually harassed you in 2012? I meant to apologize before now but there wasn’t a lot of time, and it didn’t seem like the thing to do at a funeral, but I really do want to say that I’m sorry…”

Hope props her chin in her hand, smiles behind her fingers, and looks at Scott. She’s not trying to shut him up, because sometimes there’s really just magic in making him finish saying his own thoughts. 

Cassie, on the other hand, looks like she wants to die, and has her face screwed up in what has to be a universal teenaged faced of parental embarrassment. “Dad! You did what? And how? You were in prison in 2012!”

“I said he has America’s ass,” Scott admits, looking crestfallen.

“You definitely didn’t tell me the part where you hit on Cap,” Hope manages, starting to laugh out loud, which is usually not a thing she does, but this is actually so much better than how she imagined Scott finding Steve in the living room. Cassie laughs with her; afterall, it _is _America’s ass.__

__Scott turns to face Hope, clearly trying to escape the hell he’s put himself into, “Van Dyne, focus. Maybe fewer jokes and a little help here?”_ _

__“Oh no, you’re on your own, Lang.” Scott shoots her a dirty look that promises retribution, but she just smiles and laughs harder._ _

__Hope is not sure what she had expected when she turns to see how the ex-Captain America was reacting to all of this. Maybe some blushing. He seems like he’d blush a lot, what with being Irish and all. Or maybe he’d be annoyed. Annoyance is a pretty standard baseline for most people with Scott when he’s like this. She personally has come to see it as the tiniest bit endearing, but she’ll go to her grave before she’ll admit it._ _

__But instead, Steve has his arms crossed over his chest and his head tucked inwards as his whole body shakes with silent laughter. The tips of his ears are turning red, though, so she’s not entirely off._ _

__“Scott,” Steve says, still laughing a little. “No, I’m not….here for that, Christ, that would be a hell of a thing to drive across the country for. Anyways, uh. Tony started it, so. Don’t worry about it. Middle of a mission, sometimes the craziest shit comes to you. Trust me, I know.”_ _

__“Thanks Cap, I really appreciate it,” Scott manages, actually visibly relieved, and takes the enchiladas back from Cassie. “You should really have some of these, Ernesto’s wife is a miracle worker with off-brand bagged cheese. I’ll be right back. Hope?”_ _

__Scott gives her a very pointed look, so this time, Hope does follow him to help, politely excusing herself._ _

__So what if her mocking “thanks Cap, I really appreciate it” is audible as they go into the kitchen to heat up the food for lunch._ _

__***_ _

__Steve is still standing, looking for all of the world like he’s torn between walking out the front door and going into the kitchen to help, when Cassie throws a small pillow at him._ _

__“Don’t follow,” Cassie warns Steve, wrinkling her nose, “trust me. They’re probably making out while it heats up.”_ _

__Steve shakes his head, and sits back down in the trash mustard chair. “There a reason why you didn’t tell them I was coming by?”_ _

__Cassie shrugs. “I don’t know, it kinda didn’t even occur to me.”_ _

__Steve just looks at her, gaze a little disbelieving, and raises an eyebrow. Damn. That Captain America Look is really effective, and he absolutely doesn’t need the suit or the shield to pull it off._ _

__Cassie rolls her eyes, again, and flops back into the pink chair. “I dunno. It’s weird, right? Like I didn’t….I didn’t exactly have the normal kid boundaries, for these past five years, I got used to just, like….doing whatever because Mom was so busy, and not that I want that back, because I don’t. But….” She picks idly at the chipped purple nail polish on her right thumbnail and sighs. “I don’t know. It’s like, we’re not really talking about it. I didn’t want to make him sad. Like, ‘yeah you were dead so Captain America had to call to make sure I was eating my vegetables.’”_ _

__“I don’t think that I ever asked you about vegetables once,” Steve says, “but yeah. I get it. It’s…..a lot happened for us. But not for them. I’m still trying to figure out how to live with it, myself.”_ _

__Cassie meets his gaze and smiles, a little tremulously. “It’s like. Kind of a huge relief to hear you say that, because I was starting to think it was just me, or something. No one else was saying it. And like, Dad and Hope are great. They really are, even when they think I don’t notice they’re making out again. But they get to do this together and I was kind of like, alone. For a long time.”_ _

__Cassie clears her throat, and then looks away blinking, because dude, she’s practically a grown up now and she’s definitely not gonna cry in front of her cool grown up friend. “Anyways, I’m sorry my weirdo Dad like, hit on you while time traveling, that’s just about the most embarrassing thing that I think he’s ever done.”_ _

__Steve grins, wryly. “I feel like that can’t possibly be true.”_ _

__“Hey!” Dad calls out from the doorway, indignant, “c’mon, man, I thought we were cool!”_ _

__Dad is still flushed as he re-enters the living room with a sizzling tray of enchiladas, while Hope follows swiftly behind him with a stack of plates and a bowl of salad from last night’s dinner that appears to have new, hastily cut vegetables on top of it._ _

__Cassie swallows, hard, and really, really hopes that Dad didn’t hear too much of that conversation._ _

__But if he did, he doesn’t act like it, busily scooping enchiladas onto plates. “I wasn’t kidding when I said Ernesto’s wife is a magician, and if you’ve been on the road, you really need to try these, Cap. Er, not-Cap. Hope says you’re not Cap, but what’s up with that? What should I call you? Mr. Rogers? No, that sounds weird.”_ _

__“I call him Steve,” Cassie declares. “He said I could.”_ _

__Dad pauses but doesn’t say anything as he continues to divvy up the food._ _

__“Scott,” Hope says, delicately, putting her hand on top of Dad’s serving hand to stop him from heaping the entire dish onto one plate because he’s hiding his emotions, “Steve looked out for Cassie while you were gone.”_ _

__Cassie nods, “it was pretty cool.”_ _

__“It is pretty cool, Peanut,” Dad agrees, after a tense moment, smiling at Cassie, and she can’t help but let out a sigh of relief. He hands one plate to Steve, another to Hope, and squares his shoulders._ _

__“Thanks for that, Steve,” he says, meeting Steve’s eyes without any hint of a joke._ _

__Steve shrugs in on himself, a little, looking self-conscious, and for the first time, Cassie can really see how he used to be five foot nothing, just like all of the textbooks said. “It was nothing, really…..I, uh, I know a little something about what it’s like to lose people at a young age, like that. It was the least I could do.”_ _

__“I know how much Peggy Carter’s letters meant to me,” Hope agrees, “it was nice to have somebody to talk to after Mom disappeared. Those letters kept me from acting out on how sad I was.”_ _

__Cassie doesn’t miss the way Steve jolts, a little, at the sound of Peggy’s name. There’s a story there, she’s sure, and maybe one day she’ll even manage to get it out of him. Since they’re like, absolutely friends and all._ _

__“Whoa whoa whoa, are you trying to tell us you know how to act out? You, Hope Van Dyne?” Dad grins like the Cheshire Cat._ _

__Cassie snorts. “Yeah, what would you have done, gone late to class once?”_ _

__Dad chimes in again, and says, “worn mismatched socks?!”_ _

__“She would _never_ ,” Cassie gasps theatrically, grabbing her own plate and flouncing onto the pink lawn chair. It feels good, to do this again. Her and Dad have always made the best tag-team. _ _

__Dad kicks lightly at Hope’s bare feet, and shoots her a teasing look. “Hope? What does a particle physicist even _do_?”_ _

__“Ugh,” Hope exclaims, rolling her eyes and tossing tortilla chips at both of them, “you’re both the worst. You know that I don’t even like socks. I don’t know why I put up with the two of you heathens. Besides, there’s no better revenge than success.”_ _

__Dad mouths “there’s no better revenge than success” at Cassie and pulls a face. Cassie grins and mouths “right???” and pulls one back._ _

__Steve just holds up both hands. “Hey now, don’t look at me, I’m not the one to talk to about acting out. I picked fights in just about every alleyway in Brooklyn when I was a kid.”_ _

__Cassie frowns because wow, that does not track with anything she was ever taught about him. “But what about all of those school PSA videos?”_ _

__“I…..don’t want to talk about it,” Steve says, before shortly cramming a giant forkful of enchiladas into his mouth. “You’re right, Scott, this is really good.”_ _

__“ _Steve_ ,” Cassie gasps, just as theatrically as before. “Did you _lie_ in those school PSA videos?” _ _

__“I was emotionally manipulated by Nazis,” Steve mutters, through a mouthful of enchiladas. “Seemed like a good idea at the time.”_ _

__“They kept those PSAs going even after you were a fugitive? Yikes. Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea,” Dad jokes, still grinning._ _

__“So,” Cassie starts, in a mock deep voice, “you’re thinking of defying the government.”_ _

__Hope snorts into her can of coke and when Cassie sneaks a look at her dad, the look on his face can only be described as hopelessly, glowingly proud._ _

__“Yeah, I can’t imagine they did much good, after that,” Steve says, ruefully, before slamming his mouth shut, like he’d somehow forgotten in the past thirty seconds that he didn’t want to talk about this at all._ _

__Cassie leans over and pats Steve on the shoulder. “No offense, Steve, but….I don’t think kids listened to those videos _before_ you went and colored on the walls in Germany.” _ _

__Steve laughs. “None taken, Cassie, trust me, I, uh -- let’s just say that I live in fear of the day Bucky finds out about those videos because he knew me when I was a teenager and it will _not_ be pretty.” _ _

__“You know,” Dad drawls, pulling out his phone with a flourish, “I made sure to get everybody’s number after the funeral, you know, just in case. I’m pretty sure that’s a phone number there under ‘Barnes.’ Hope? Is that a phone number?”_ _

__“It is a phone number,” she confirms, playing along. “But you would never do that. Not to Cap— er, Steve.”_ _

__“You’re right. I would never, not to you, Steve. But it would be super terrible if I just left my phone on the table where anybody could see my contacts.” Her dad does a very poor job of not glancing meaningfully over at Cassie._ _

__“Wow, weird,” Cassie deadpans, “what on earth should I do with my dad’s phone left on the table, unlocked, where anybody can see his contacts.”_ _

__Steve leans forward in the awful yellow chair, dropping his head into the palms of his hands, and groans. “You three make a terrifying team.”_ _

__They finish the magical enchiladas; Ernesto’s wife really does deserve a Nobel Prize._ _

__“Speaking of teamwork and making the dream work,” Dad begins, to a chorus of groans, “but I think it’s Cassie’s turn to help with the dishes.”_ _

__Dad and Hope look at each other for a beat too long, silently communicating something in that very unnerving ESP way that they have, and then Hope finally nods. “That’s true, it’s Cassie’s turn, I made the salad.”_ _

__“This vegetable massacre on the coffee table is _not_ salad, but I’ll help Dad with dishes anyway,” Cassie agrees, although this feels pretty unfair since after all, it’s her friend that’s visiting. _ _

__“Come on, Cass. You’ll be back in just a minute,” Dad cajoles, ushering her out with another look over her head at Hope. Seriously, they’re the worst._ _

__“You’re being weird,” Cassie grumbles, as she picks up the plates and takes off for the kitchen. “Please don’t hit on Steve again,” she calls over her shoulder, before slamming the door to the kitchen shut behind her._ _

__***_ _

__Hope waits for a minute, until she can hear the sound of the kitchen faucet going, along with Cassie’s slightly off-tune humming, before she turns back to face Scott and Steve._ _

__Hope smiles a little sheepishly at Steve. “You’re probably wondering what that was, and I apologize. It’s just that Scott and I wanted to tell you about this when we were sure it was possible, and well, you’re here right now. My father has been working on creating additional Pym Particles.”_ _

__Steve sits back, crossing both arms over his chest. He seems….more cautious, than anything else, at the idea of more time travel. “What’s he planning on using them for?”_ _

__“More Quantum Realm stuff,” Scott answers. “Have you ever thought that travel in the Quantum Realm sounds like some quest from Lord of The Rings?”_ _

__“Scott. Not the time.” Hope can’t manage to hide her grin even though she rolls her eyes. “He wants to further explore what’s out there, make a new portal. But, I think he wanted to give you a thank you, of sorts. For saving our lives.”_ _

__“Specifically, I don’t understand why if there’s a portal, we can’t go back and get Natasha. And,” Scott says proudly, “Hope and Hank even agreed with me.”_ _

__Steve frowns, looking confused. “Oh, uh. No one told you? I brought Natasha back, when I returned the Stones.”_ _

__“You what?” Scott asks. “How?”_ _

__At this, Steve honest to goodness smirks. “Let’s just say that I annoyed the guardian of the Soul Stone into getting my way.”_ _

__Hope feints and grabs Scott’s phone from the back pocket of his jeans. “You have 89 unread texts in your group text, Scott. One of them probably told you about Natasha. You _have_ to start checking your texts.” _ _

__Scott scoffs, “ugh, you have to check texts even in a group text? Really? Fine, I’ll start checking my texts.” Scott starts scrolling through the unread masses for a second, but then he refocuses on the conversation._ _

__Hope shakes her head at Scott, he’s honestly so clueless sometimes. “I know others were, ah, lost. But maybe it’s worth jumping back to bring them back too?”_ _

__Steve blows out a breath. “Can it be done without…..risking everything else?”_ _

__Hope nods. “My parents seem pretty sure that it can be.”_ _

__“And they’re willing to help?” Steve asks. “I mean. I don’t want to volunteer them. It’s….whatever it is, it’ll be dangerous, and I don’t want to lose anyone else.”_ _

__“Let’s put it this way,” Hope says. “My dad has found it...discomforting, trying not to hate someone now that they're dead. He would much rather go back to the way things were. He'll help.”_ _

__“Janet has the best grasp of the Quantum Realm,” Scott adds. “Also, she’s a little bit bored if these texts full of random emojis are any indication. So, I think she would want to help, too.”_ _

__“And, you have us,” Hope promises, after meeting Scott’s eyes again for another round of intense, silent communication. He nods in agreement._ _

__“Yeah, okay,” Steve says, voice gone low and quiet, like he’s forgotten they’re still in the room, and then he looks up, and nods. “I’m in.”_ _

__The kitchen is suddenly quiet when the water stops running._ _

__“And before we have a fifteen year old offering to suit up, we should change the subject,” Scott notes quickly, gesturing the universal sign of cut the conversation across his throat. “So,” he says, much louder, to Steve, “how’s Thor doing these days?”_ _

__“Scott, man, you really need to check your texts,” Steve shakes his head, leveling what Hope can only describe as a Captain America is Disappointed Face at Scott and yep, that’s just effective now as it must’ve been before, when he still actually had the job. “I check my texts and I was born in 1918.”_ _

__“Ohhhhh, old man burn,” Cassie says, as she re-enters the room and flops back into the bright pink lawn chair. “What’d I miss?”_ _

__“Just boring old people stuff, Peanut,” Scott says, as guilelessly as possible._ _

__Hope catches Steve’s gaze out of the corner of her eye, both of them caught somewhere in between exasperation and cracking up._ _

__Well. They got Rogers on board, in any case. The time for planning will come later._ _

__For now, Hope is crossing her fingers that the next surprise will be dessert, and given that it’s Scott and Cassie who do all the cooking around here, she’s probably not wrong._ _


End file.
